New EO on “Natural Resources Defense Preparedness”

Some corners of the internet were abuzz this weekend over a new Executive Order signed by President Obama on Friday concerning “Natural Resources Defense Preparedness.” The EO, which seeks to ensure the country has “an industrial and technological base capable of meeting national defense requirements and capable of contributing to the technological superiority of its national defense equipment in peacetime and in times of national emergency,” is the stuff of which conspiracy theories are made. Yet there’s no there there. The EO is simply an update of prior orders on the same subject going back decades to, among other things, account for changes in the cabinet and the like. if this is a presidential power grab — and I don’t believe it is — the power was grabbed decades ago. For more, see Ed Morrissey’s detailed assessment.